Southern Miss Students to Present Undergraduate Research in Jackson

Three students from The University of Southern Mississippi will present their undergraduate research to state legislators during the Posters in the Rotunda program set for Thursday, March 24 in Jackson, Miss.

Undergraduate students from universities across the state will share results of their research during a poster session at the State Capitol building in Jackson. Students will have the opportunity to talk and network with legislators, and students from other universities while bringing awareness to their research.

The Southern Miss students and their planned presentations include:

Joseph Jelinski, from Diamondhead, Miss., will present “Painless Hematophagy: The Role of Metalloproteases in Pain Suppression”

Laurel Duty of Collins, Miss., will present “Roles of Osteopontin and Neutrophils in the Pathogenesis of West Nile Virus”

Jelinski is also a research student in The Mississippi IDeA Network of Biomedical Research Excellence (INBRE), housed at Southern Miss. He joins fellow INBRE researcher and Delta State University student Christine Beck, from Crystal Springs, Miss., in the poster presentation. Beck will present “Role of Tick Antioxidants in Rickettsia parkeri Colonization in the Gulf.”

Jelinski and Beck interned in the laboratory of Dr. Shahid Karim, in the Department of Biological Sciences at Southern Miss, during their 10-week summer program last year.

“The Mississippi INBRE is a statewide program that is designed to promote biomedical research. We have invested heavily in many institutions of higher education in the state to give students the opportunity to be directly involved in research,” said Dr. Mohamed Elasri, Mississippi INBRE Director. “I am very proud to see some of the students participate in this event and to showcase the research they have conducted. INBRE has had a significant impact on biomedical research in the Mississippi and I am happy that the legislature gets to see some of our work.”

About Mississippi INBRE

The program, directed by Dr. Mohamed Elasri, a professor at The University of Southern Mississippi, is a statewide initiative that is supported by an award from the National Institutes of General Medical Sciences. Its mission is to enhance the biomedical foundation in Mississippi and to reach out to Mississippians in order to improve health throughout the state. Mississippi INBRE seeks to engage talented researchers and students in biomedical research projects that will increase the state’s research competitiveness as well as impact the health of citizens of Mississippi.